PA Media/dpa
London
Inter Milan boss Simone Inzaghi has described the start of their Italian Super Cup defence against Atalanta as a meeting between “two sides on incredible journeys”.
Inzaghi’s side play Serie A leaders Atalanta in the first semi-final on Thursday, with Juventus and AC Milan also part of the four-team tournament in Riyadh.
Inter - winners of the last three Italian Super Cups - and Atalanta have arrived in Saudi Arabia as the two form teams in Italian football.
Europa League champions Atalanta have not been beaten in domestic football since September 24 and Inter have lost only once in 18 games in all competitions.
“Two sides on incredible journeys will play one another,” Inzaghi said at his pre-match press conference.
“Atalanta’s biggest success, aside from the Europa League, is the fact that it is no longer a surprise, they are getting brilliant results in the league and Champions League.
“It will be a hard game for us like always, Inter will have to put in a good performance against a side doing well and getting results.”
Atalanta suffered a rare heavy defeat at the end of August when the Nerazzurri beat them 4-0 at San Siro.
But Inzaghi is setting no store on that result, saying: “We faced them when the transfer window was still open and they had several issues.
“Since then, they’ve had a great three-and-a-half months: they are very physical but have a lot of skill in all areas of the pitch.
“We have some issues with numbers in defence, we hope (Francesco) Acerbi and (Benjamin) Pavard will be back in the first half of January. (Raffaele) Di Gennaro is also out.
“The Supercoppa is very important to us, we’ve shown that in the last three years, winning the title.
“But we know that there are three other sides with the same goal.” Atalanta boss Gian Piero Gasperini says his team are confident despite the competition’s “rather peculiar timing” in mid-season.
Gasperini said: “Atalanta are in good shape. It’s a team that knows how to fend for themselves.
“Of course playing so many games in quick succession leads to some fatigue, a little wear and tear and some injuries which are par for the course.
“However, this gives us a chance to see most, if not all, of the squad in action. They have shown some good signs, which will come in handy in the league.”
The second semi-final between AC Milan and Juventus will be played on Friday evening, with the final scheduled for Monday.
